One-piece hair curlers



Sept. 11, 1956 s. GRASSO ETAL 2,762,379

ONE-PIECE HAIR CURLERS Filed Jan. 13, 1954 INVENTORS SANTO GRASSO WALLY F. KERN ATTORNEYS United States Patent" ONE-PIECE-HAIR CURLERS Santo Grasso and Wally F. Kern, Philadelphia, Pa. Application January 13, 1954, Serial No. 403,688 2 Claims. (Cl. 132--43) Our invention is an improved hair curler of the type having two opposed curl retaining portions joined by a central portion of reduced width, which central portion forms a hair-winding mandrel. The curler has a hair clamping tab fixed at one end to one of the curl retaining portions of the curler, the tab being sufliciently long so that it may be folded back on the curler to overlie the central mandrel portion of the curler thereby serving to retain the ends of the hair grouped together in strand form prior to Wrapping the hair around the mandrel portion and thereby assist the user to start the hair winding on the curler.

The principal object of our invention is to provide a hair curler which may be quickly and easily applied to strands of hair by a person having only ordinary skill in the use of such devices. One of the principal difliculties experienced by the user of a hair curler when applying the same to her own hair is occasioned by the fact that it is hard to hold the ends of the hair in place on the curler while at the same time rotating the curler to wrap the haid therearound. Our invention obviates this difiiculty by providing the aforementioned hair clamping tab which may be bent into a position wherein it overlies the said mandrel portion so that the ends of the hair may be clamped therebetween, the curler then being rotated so as to Wrap the hair around both the mandrel and the tab. It is therefore important that the tab be of sufficient length so that when it is folded to overlie the curler it will extend at least across the Whole mandrel portion thereof, and preferably somewhat therebeyond.

A very important object of our invention is to provide a hair curler of the type specified which is of one-piece construction so that the curler may be stamped in a single operation from a piece of sheet material, the manufacture of the curler being completed by said single stamping operation.

Another important object of our invention is to provide a hair curler which, when applied to the hair, may be folded over about the tab and the mandrel portion of the curler and may be retained in such folded position by the application of a bobby pin or other similar device. An important advantage of this type of curler is that the wound strand of hair and the curler form a substantially flat bundle which may be oriented to lie against the users head, and therefore may be comfortably slept upon.

Another important object of our invention is to provide a hair curler of the type specified above wherein the enlarged curl-retaining portions are apertured or perforated so as to permit the hair to dry readily in the curled position, such curlers being frequently applied to hair which has been previously wetted so as to create a water curl.

Another important object of this invention is to provide a hair curler which will not damage or snag the hair and thereby render it diificult to remove the curler.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a hair curler of neat and decorative appearance which may be made of colored material so that the hair curler may be ice worn as an ornament, while at the same time performing the function of hair curling for which it is intended.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent during the following discussion of the drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a plan view of one embodiment of our hair curler, the figure showing a curler of unitary construction having two enlarged cur -retaining portions joined by the reduced mandrel portion, and having a hair-clamping" tab secured to one of the enlarged curl retaining portions.

Fig. 2 is an elevation view of the device shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan View corresponding to Fig. 1 but showing a strand of hair turned about the mandrel portion, the ends of the hair being clamped there-against by said hair clamping tab.

Fig. 4 is an elevational view of the device as shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a plan view showing the strand of hair wound around the mandrel portion and tab but showing the enlarged curl-retaining portions still in unfolded position.

Fig. 6 is an elevational' view showing the enlarged curlretaining portions folded together to hold the Wound hair in flat-curl form and retained in place by a bobby pin.

Fig. 7 is an end view taken normal to the plane of the enlarged curl-retaining portions, and clearly showing the manner in which the curler is used to produce a flat curl as distinguished from a tubular or cylindrical curl.

Referring now to the drawings, the various figures show a curler body having two opposed enlarged curl-retaining portions 1 and 2 joined together by a central mandrel portion 3 of reduced width, the curler also having a hairclamping tab 4 secured to one of the enlarged curl-retaining portions, the members 1, 2, 3 and 4 being made of flexible sheet material and being preferably of unitary construction which lends itself to mass-production manufacture. In Figs. 1, 3, 5 and 6 it will be seen that the enlarged curl-retaining portions 1 and 2 are respectively apertured as at 1:2 and 2a for the purpose hereinafter set forth.

The respective figures illustrate in sequence the manner of use of the hair curler, beginning with Figs. 1 and 2 which show the curler as it is manufactured and before it is applied to the hair.

In applying the curler to the hair, the hair may be first moistened and then combed into a strand S, Fig. 3, which strand is turned about the mandrel portion 3. The hair clamping tab 4 is then bent back on the curler about dashed line 4x, Fig. 1, so that the ends of the hair are clamped by a tab 4 against the mandrel portion 3 as shown in Fig. 3. The enlarged curl-retaining portions 1 and 2 are then grasped by the user, while at the same time holding the tab 4 against the mandrel portion 3, and the curler is rotated so as to roll the hair up around the mandrel portion 3 and tab 4 into the position shown in Fig. 5, the curler being rotated until it is practically adjacent to the scalp and until no further rotation may be had. The two enlarged curl-retaining portions 1 and 2 are then bent together about the mandrel portion 3 so that the ends of the curler are brought into substantially parallel relation as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, and a bobby pin B or other type of fastener is then atfixed across the enlarged curl-retaining portions 1 and 2 in the manner shown in these figures so as to prevent the curler from springing open and permitting the curl to unwind, and so as to assure that the curl will be maintained fiat while the hair is drying.

Attention is called to the apertures la and 2a which permit the hair to dry more rapidly since the hair is exposed to air passing through these apertures, as shown in Fig. 6.

The hair curler, according to very quickly and inexpensively body portion thereof including members 1, 2, 3 and 4 may our invention, may be manufactured since the.

be made of any desired sheet material, which material should be chosen so that the curler may easily be bent in the vicinity of the mandrel portion 3 to assume the position shownin Figs. 6 and 7. The material selected, however, should also be suficiently stiff so that the mar1- drel and curl-retaining portions of the body will not be so flexible as to make it difiicult to wind" the hair thereon.

We do'notllirnit our invention to the exact form shown in the drawings for obviously changes may be made therein within the scope of the claims.

We claim:

1. A hair curler for forming a strand of hair into a substantially flat spiral curl, comprising a unitary body of bendable sheet material, said body having opposed enlarged curl-retaining portions joined by a central portion of reduced width forming a curl winding mandrel, and said body having a hair-clamping tab attached to one of said enlarged portions, said tab being of length greater than the length of one enlarged curl-retaining portion plus the length of said central portion, and of width no greater than the width of said central portion, the said tab being bendable to overlie said central portion and. clamp a strand of hair prior to winding the latter about said mandrel portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 83,892 Tyler Nov. 10, 1868 314,100 Brooks Mar. 17, 1885 332,483 Brooks Dec. 15, 1885 345,024 Blakesley July 6, 1886 570,836 Baldwin Nov. 3, 1896 1,323,565 Ayer Dec. 2, 1919 1,370,932 Tolman Mar. 8, 1921 1,511,743 Meserole Oct. 14, 1924 1,520,933 Condon Dec. 30, 1924 1,859,440 Gorin May 24, 1932 2,263,631 Kayn Nov. 25, 1941 2,364,596 Archer Dec. 12, 1944 2,535,223 Montgomery Dec. 26, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 671,910 Great Britain May 14, 1952 

